Last month, when Archbishop Charles Chaput told an audience that Pope Francis would come to Philadelphia in 2015, the Archdiocese of Philadelphia hastily issued a statement saying the visit was unconfirmed. But now, another prelate has confirmed the visit: Pope Francis himself. On Thursday, en route to South Korea, the pontiff replied "Si" when NBC News reporter Anne Thompson asked if he would visit Philadelphia at any point. The pope went on to mention the World Meeting of Families, which will be held in the city Sept.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Authorities say a woman has been strangled in a Philadelphia apartment not far from where two other women met the same fate. Twenty-two-year-old Allison Edwards of Levittown was found Friday night in a building in the city's Juniata Park section. The medical examiner ruled Saturday she had been strangled. The apartment is about two miles from the Kensington area where two women were sexually assaulted and strangled last month. Police say DNA evidence appears to link those two killings.

The Philadelphia Eagles are going through a walk-through practice today in Foxboro in advance of Friday night's preseason game with Patriots. … The Phillies, who lost to the Angels Wednesday night 4-3, are off tonight before beginning a three-game series in San Francisco Friday night. … The Little League World Series begins today in Williamsport. The Taney Youth Baseball Association team out of Philadelphia, the U.S. Mid-Atlantic representative, plays Friday at 3 p.m. vs. the Southeast team on ESPN.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Authorities say six students have suffered minor stab wounds in an altercation near a high school in west Philadelphia. The disturbance happened on a street near Boys Latin Charter School shortly before 8 a.m. Friday. Officer Christine O'Brien, a Philadelphia police spokeswoman, says investigators are still trying to figure out what led to the disturbance and who is responsible. O'Brien says the students suffered various wounds to the legs, hands and mouth, but that none is believed to be serious.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Police in Philadelphia report a bloody end to the old year and the start of a new one with six people killed and others injured around the City of Brotherly Love. Police said shortly before midnight, a 36-year-old man and 31-year-old woman were found shot to death in a car north of the center of the city. A few hours later, a 23-year-old man was found nearby with a gunshot wound and died at a hospital. A few minutes after midnight, a 77-year-old man died after he was stabbed in a domestic dispute in south Philadelphia.

By Stephanie Sigafoos, OF THE MORNING CALL and By Stephanie Sigafoos, OF THE MORNING CALL | June 19, 2014

Will a Space Needle-like structure rise in Philadelphia? PHL Local Gaming says yes, if the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board grants them a Category 2 casino gaming license. The proposed 615-foot-tall amusement tower, which is being dubbed the Skyspire, would feature gondolas seating at least 10 people each and a rooftop restaurant and observation deck. It would be part of the adjacent LoSo Entertainment Center, which PHL would develop along with Casino Revolution at Front Street and Packer Avenue near the sports complex.

NBC executives are asking avid TV watchers to demand "The Event," and so far fans in the Philadelphia metro area -- 209 of them and counting -- are listening. What is "The Event", exactly? According to NBC, the show is, "An emotional, high-octane conspiracy thriller that follows Sean Walker ( Jason Ritter, "The Class"), an Everyman who investigates the mysterious disappearance of his would-be fiancée, Leila ( Sarah Roemer, "Disturbia"), and unwittingly begins to expose the biggest cover-up in U.S. history.

EXTON, Pa. (AP) — A 6-year-old boy has died after being struck by a school bus in suburban Philadelphia. Police say the Pickering Valley Elementary School first-grader died Tuesday. He'd been hospitalized in Delaware since being struck by the bus that dropped him off at his Exton home on June 16. Authorities have declined to release the boy's name. Police say the boy apparently darted in front of the bus after being dropped off but an investigating is ongoing. Downingtown Area School District is offering counseling students and families.

At least for the next three years, it's unlikely to happen. But Brett Myers is already pondering a return to the club that drafted him. "I'd like to have another chance to play here, but right now I have to focus on the team that I'm on now," Myers said. "I enjoy the city. I enjoy the people. I know some people don't like me, or whatever their reasoning is, and that's their opinion. After [Monday], with the way they treated me in the bullpen -- I expected them to boo when I'm coming to the plate.

When Matt Nathanson plays Philadelphia's Mann Center for the Performing Arts tonight, Aug. 15, it will be the third time in nine months the singer-songwriter has played in Philadelphia. Nathanson stopped at The Electric Factory in November to promote his then-new latest album “Last of the Great Pretenders.” He returned to World Cafe Live in February to play a radio station WXPN-FM benefit for Musicians on Call, a group that has musicians play at hospital patients' bedsides. Matt Nathanson at Philadelphia's Electric Factory in November Photo by Brian Hineline/Special to The Morning Call And now he returns as part of his co-headlining tour with Gavin DeGraw.

Massively popular U.K. vocal group One Direction essentially gave a lesson in the careers of boy bands with its concert Wednesday at a sold-out Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia. It plays a second sold-out show there tonight, Aug. 14. Its show was an extravaganza, as you would expect from the reigning teen idols (all three of its albums, including its most recent album, “Midnight Memories,” have gone No. 1 and hit platinum). It had a huge stage, rising platform and five sets of fireworks (three on the last song alone)

— It's showtime for Philadelphia. The Democratic National Committee is heading to town Wednesday and Thursday to evaluate the city's bid to host the party's 2016 convention. Organizers say they plan to show off the City of Brotherly Love's historic sites — as well as its practical assets. That means emphasizing Philly's bustling restaurant scene, availability of hotel rooms and general walkability in between visits to Independence Hall, the Rocky statue and world-famous cheesesteak vendors.

This could have been Jeffrey Lurie's empire. The native New Englander and current Eagles owner tried to buy the Patriots before he ever thought of the Eagles. Only after he was unsuccessful here did he turn his attention toward Philadelphia. But on Tuesday, as he looked out over the joint practice between his team and the Patriots, he reiterated how he couldn't have been happier with the way things have worked out. "I've never actually looked back on it," he said.

After murdering his wife, police say, Christopher Murray immediately made a series of missteps that quickly made him into a prime suspect. For one thing, his first effort to find her once she went "missing" was to contact police and hospitals, not family friends. For another, he left out of his narrative to police something investigators quickly documented via video footage: He had been videoed talking with her from his car while she walked in Pennypack Park shortly before she was found strangled.

As expected, it was not David Buchanan who took the mound for the IronPigs in this morning's Camp Day matinee against Durham at Coca-Cola Park. Instead, the starting assignment went to Jeff Manship. “That's Triple-A baseball,” IronPigs manager Dave Brundage said of the uncertainty. That means Buchanan will take Cliff Lee's start for the Phillies on Wednesday against Houston. The official announcement will come after their game tonight with the Astros. Manship had a 6.23 ERA in three appearances for the IronPigs since clearing waivers and being outrighted to Triple-A on July 26. He was 1-2 with a 6.65 ERA in 20 games for the Phillies and also spent nearly six weeks on the disabled list with a quad strain.

When Matt Nathanson plays Philadelphia's Mann Center for the Performing Arts tonight, Aug. 15, it will be the third time in nine months the singer-songwriter has played in Philadelphia. Nathanson stopped at The Electric Factory in November to promote his then-new latest album “Last of the Great Pretenders.” He returned to World Cafe Live in February to play a radio station WXPN-FM benefit for Musicians on Call, a group that has musicians play at hospital patients' bedsides. Matt Nathanson at Philadelphia's Electric Factory in November Photo by Brian Hineline/Special to The Morning Call And now he returns as part of his co-headlining tour with Gavin DeGraw.

Philadelphia won't be host to the 2016 Olympics because it lacks international support and was not recognized by the United States Olympic Committee as a sporting city. An additional concern was expressed about spectators being distracted by errant bullets. T. Scott Curt Bethlehem

Mayor Nutter of Philadelphia wants a $2 per pack cigarette tax to fund his city's schools, which would bring in around $80 million. What is wrong with this picture? I, as a smoker, can't be near a school or at sporting events, beaches, restaurants and bars with a lit cigarette. Need I say more? Isn't that a bit hypocritical? Maybe he should think of raising the school tax for people who have more than one child attending his schools. What's next, a $2 tax on haircuts to fund his schools?